Total ban X in Brazil: VPN bypass will cost $8900 daily

[Friend]

Millions of Brazilians were left without a platform.

Brazil's Supreme Court has ordered the suspension of social network X (formerly known as Twitter) in the country. The reason was the platform's failure to comply with the requirement to appoint a legal representative in Brazil.

Judge Alexandre de Moraes, who has been in a confrontation with owner of X Elon Musk since April, issued an order for the "immediate, complete and total suspension of X's activities" in the country. The suspension will remain in effect until the company complies with all court orders, pays the fines imposed and appoints a new legal representative in Brazil.

The National Telecommunications Agency was given 24 hours to implement the decision. The agency is to pass the order to more than 20,000 broadband internet providers in the country, each of which is required to block access to X*. The president of the agency, Carlos Manuel Baigorri, said that the order has already been handed over to Internet providers.

Initially, Judge Moraes also demanded that Apple and Google "implement technological barriers to prevent iOS and Android users from using App X" and block the use of VPNs. However, this part of the order was later canceled to avoid potential problems for third companies.

The court's decision also provides for a fine of 50,000 reais (about $10,000) per day for any person or company using workarounds such as VPNs to access X after being blocked.

The deadline given by X to appoint a new legal representative in the country expired on Thursday evening. An hour later, Elon Musk's social network announced that it would not comply with this requirement.

Musk reacted to the situation by writing in X that Brazil is "shutting down the main source of truth" and that the country's "repressive regime" is "so afraid that people will find out the truth that it will ruin anyone who tries" to spread it.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva commented on the situation, saying that having a lot of money does not give Musk the right to disrespect the country. He stressed that any citizens from anywhere in the world who have an investment in Brazil are subject to the Brazilian constitution and laws.

The conflict between X and Brazilian authorities began in April, when Moraes ordered the suspension of dozens of accounts for allegedly spreading disinformation. Musk denounced the decision as censorship.

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[Friend]

Elon Musk bypassed the ban on X in Brazil.

A technical loophole helped the social network to work again after the blocking.

The X social network has reopened in Brazil after a three-week ban by the country's Supreme Court. This became possible thanks to a technical maneuver — changing the routing of Internet traffic. The company used Cloudflare to bypass blocks set by Brazilian ISPs.

The head of Brazilian telecommunications regulator Anatel confirmed X's actions and noted that the agency is now looking for ways to block the platform again. The confrontation has become a serious test for the Brazilian authorities, as Musk clearly does not intend to give in, turning the situation into a struggle between national sovereignty and the power of global Internet companies.

Earlier, the Supreme Court decided to block X for refusing to delete a number of accounts that violate the laws of the country, after which the company's offices in Brazil were closed. Soon, another Musk company, Starlink, offered to open access to X directly through satellites, but abandoned this idea under the threat of losing its license in Brazil.

Now, Brazilian regulators are trying to find a way to block X again, but according to technical experts, it won't be easy. Cloudflare powers more than 24 million websites, including those of the Brazilian government and banks, making blocking extremely difficult and potentially dangerous for users in the country.

Brazilian ISPs are awaiting further guidance from regulators. A spokesperson for industry group Abrint said that solving the problem could take several days, and possibly longer, as it would require new blocking methods, which are not currently available.

Some experts are skeptical. In their opinion, despite the technical possibility of finding a solution, implementation may require significant resources and time. There is no final consensus among ISPs yet, and they are still discussing possible next steps. Meanwhile, many users in Brazil are already celebrating the return of X, although access to the social network is not yet stable and depends on the provider and device.

 

[Man]

Brazil's Supreme Court: Social Network X Paid Fines to Wrong Bank
Brazil's Supreme Court has reported that social network X has failed to pay a fine to the relevant bank, Reuters reports. This has delayed a decision on whether to allow the tech company to resume operations in the Latin American country.

In late August, a Brazilian court ruled to block X in the country. The judge also ordered Google Play and the App Store to remove X clients and VPN apps that would allow bypassing the restriction. Brazil's major ISPs then began the process of globally blocking Elon Musk's social network.

The reason for the standoff was the businessman's refusal to appoint a legal representative in the country. The company was also accused of spreading disinformation. The platform's ban will remain in effect until X complies with all court orders and pays all imposed fines.

As of late September, the company had to pay more than $5 million in fines.

X filed a new request to resume operations on October 4, stating that all imposed fines had been paid. In response, Brazil's Supreme Court Justice Alexandre do Moraes demanded that the funds be transferred to the "right bank". Once the payment issues are resolved, Brazil's attorney general will give his opinion on the platform's lawyers' recent requests.

X denied the report that the company paid fines to the wrong bank. The platform's lawyers informed the country's court that the fine amounted to $5.24 million.